Jordanelle Reservoir 2014

Last year's trip to Jordanelle Reservoir was such a great success that we decided to do it again this year.  We were able to borrow a kayak and a paddle board from my sister (thanks Denise!) and Seth came with us this time, which meant that we didn't have room for all six of us and the gear in the van, so Mieren and Alys drove separately!  The reason that we decided to include Seth this time around was because Mieren and Alys are moving to California at the end of the month, so we wanted all of the boys to spend some time with their cousins before they moved. 

We got to the reservoir a few hours before we could check into the cabin. Our original plan was to play in the water then eat lunch and check in, but it was really windy, so we just played along the edge of the water for a while.  The kids started throwing small rocks into the water (it is good to know that no matter how old they are they still like throwing rocks!) and then they started to collect big rocks to make a sort of dock for them to stand on. 

Seth

Alys, Paul, Mark, Mieren

Collecting rocks

Team work!

We ate lunch in the van while we warmed up from being in the wind.  It started to rain, but it was a small sprinkle. After lunch we checked into the cabin and played around.  The weather cleared up a lot and we all got into the water. Yep, this year I got in the water!  I really like the small kayak that we used.  I am just at the top of the recommended weight limit, so I have to be careful with my balance, but it works really good for me!

 The water level was still low this year, but not as low as last year.  It will be interesting to see how it looks when it is at 100% capacity!

Mr. Mark, my hero!

 After we showered we played some games in the cabin. I was on the top bunk reading and I fell asleep for about 10-15 minutes. The kids had started some new game that they made up where they each picked different countries and had wars with each other.  They rearranged furniture- the bunk bed represented the northern hemisphere, the table was the dividing line and the futon was the southern hemisphere.  At one point they were all on the northern hemisphere- all at war with each other.  It was happy chaos!  

 After dinner they got back into the water for a while.   Jessica (Mieren and Aly's mom) came up to visit. The clouds we getting bigger and we saw a beautiful rainbow!  

Mark has powers you've only dreamed of!

We watched an amazing lightning show behind the mountains and then the lighting and thunder got close enough to us that we put the fire out and called it a night.  I am so glad that we were in the cabin and not a tent because the wind and rain storm that we had was pretty impressive. The storm finally calmed down around 12:30 and I was able to go to sleep. 

The next morning we played in the water one last time and then packed up and headed home. (I swear that I was there, I just didn't step out from behind the camera!)

I have to admit that I am sad that the girls are moving to California. I am really excited for them because of the great adventures they have ahead of them, but selfishly I'm sad.  It will most likely get us out to California more often, which isn't a bad thing! Looking back through last year's pictures I was stunned at how much the kids have grown up. It was a real privilege to spend some time with such amazing people.